Lost, Blade, and Cat-Naps
by Griffin Stone
Summary: (AU to Distant Memories/ three short stories) Matt didn't go with Te-Osh, Olia stuck around on Kraydah's moon, and Keith didn't regain his memory in two short weeks. Join the trio as Keith adjusts to his new home at Kraydah's moon, relearns how to fight, and displays some truly strange sleeping habits. (Chapter three now fixed and title changed.)
1. Lost, but Not Alone

**A/N: What's this? Only three chapters and listed as complete? Well, long story short, B(AS)IA was getting way out of hand for me. It was only meant to be a few one-shots, but quickly developed into a huge plot... which I do not have time for. If you want a more detailed explanation and how the paladins' battle would have gone, I will have it briefly on my profile.**

 **For those who are new, hello! This is a trio of short stories AU of my story, Distant Memories. Just some stuff that could have happened if Keith, Matt, and Olia had stuck around on Kraydah's moon. They all take place at about the same time, just focusing on different things.**

* * *

Matt stood up abruptly. "Oh, Te-Osh! I need to go! We were going some more of that nano-thermite titanium boron she likes to use so much."

"More?" Olia asked. "You're taking a big risk every time you go back. How long before that Unilu tells the Galra about you for some kind of bounty?"

Matt ran a hand through his hair, making it stand on end and streaking it with grease. "I don't know. I trust Te-Osh, but I can't help but feel the same. That merchant had an odd look in his eye last time we went."

"Did you tell Te-Osh?"

"No, I… I don't want her to think I'm paranoid," Matt said ruefully.

"Better paranoid than captured," Olia said drily.

"Eh… I'll mention it to her," Matt said. He started to back toward the door. "I've got to go now. Take care of the human until I get back!"

"Of course I-" Olia blinked as Matt smirked and ran from the room. "Hey, you do know I'm leaving soon, right?"

Olia got no response, as Matt was already gone. She shook her head and turned back to the pod, wondering if Matt would take her at her thoughtless word.

Probably.

* * *

Only half an hour had passed before the door opened again, and Matt walked in. Olia looked up, startled by his return.

"I thought you were already gone," Olia said.

"I would be." Matt took a seat beside Olia. "But I told Te-Osh about my hunch. Turns out, I'm not the only one who thought there was something off with the merchant. Te-Osh decided to not risk another run."

"Oh. So, what now?"

Matt shrugged. "For now, we'll be staying here."

Olia smiled, eyeing Keith's strong vitals. "The pup will be glad to have another human around, as long as you are staying."

* * *

Two days later, Olia, Matt, and Mikkal were gathered around the H pod. Mikkal had announced earlier that morning that Keith would soon be healed enough to leave the pod.

For the last two days, Olia and Matt had alternated staying with Keith. While Olia was reluctant to leave Keith even on Matt's rotation, either Matt or Mikkal could usually convince her to leave for food or rest.

Now, Olia was barely blinked as she stared intently at Keith through the clear dome.

Matt leaned around her and commented blandly, "You'd better blink before your eyeballs dry out."

Olia automatically blinked and swung her gaze back to Matt. The boy grinned at her, then a low chime brought both of their attentions back to the pod as Keith gave a slight twitch.

"He moved! Did you see that?" Olia asked, her tail starting to wag.

Matt chuckled. "I did. He's waking up."

Mikkal tapped a few keys on the side of the pod, then the dome gave a slight hiss as it raised. A shudder ran through Keith's frame as Mikkal fully opened the pod and lowered the sides.

"Pup?"

Keith's fingers tightened on his knife. His eyelids fluttered open briefly, before scrunching shut again. Olia leaned over him, blocking out the bright ceiling lights. After a moment, his eyes opened. He stared blankly at her, then a slow smile spread across his face.

"Olia," Keith rasped.

"Hey, pup. How do you feel?"

Keith blinked drowsily. "Fine… I guess."

Olia raised an eyebrow at Mikkal. Keith was still acting a bit out of it for her taste.

"He just spent two quintants in a healing pod. It will be a few doboshes for him to be fully coherent," Mikkal explained. "Now, I have to see to my other patients. Once he is up to it, get him up and moving around. Get some food into him, too. You know where to find me if you have any other concerns."

Olia turned back to the pod to see Matt cocking his head at Keith. The dark-haired boy stared up at him, then mimicked the pose.

Matt laughed, enticing a grin from their confused companion. "Boy, is he out of it."

Olia rolled her eyes. "Well, stop acting like you've never seen a human yourself and help him to sit up. Maybe that will help."

Olia and Matt put a hand under either of Keith's shoulders and sat him up. At first, Keith's head lolled loosely, but as they repositioned him so his legs hung over the edge of the pod, he was working on holding his body straight. His grip on his knife seemed to be the only constant.

"Does that feel better?" Olia asked.

Keith nodded, so Olia and Matt let go. He promptly began to fall backward, and Matt caught his arm before he could fall over.

"Honestly, it's like his concussion all over again!" Olia said.

After another minute, though, Keith was able to sit up on his own. His expression gradually cleared, and Olia finally felt like he was looking _at_ her, as opposed to _through_ her.

"Alright then… pup, this is Matt. He's a friend of mine. And human, as you can see," Olia said, cautious to approach the topic of Keith's amnesia.

Matt grinned and stuck out a hand. Keith, his expression still holding a hint of confusion, returned the gesture and the boys shook hands.

"I… I don't know my name, but it's nice to meet you, Matt," Keith said.

Olia slumped a little at Keith's admission, but figured there was no point in dwelling on it. She held out a paw. "Are you hungry?"

Kieth opened his mouth, but his stomach gave a grumbling reply. He grinned sheepishly. "Yeah."

"Okay, but first." Matt hurried over to the chair, and picked up the two outfits laying there. "I've got your armor here, but I don't know if you want to wear armor all the time, so I found a spare shirt and pants."

"Armor," Keith said without hesitation.

Matt wasn't much taller than Keith, but Keith was also pretty scrawny next to Matt. His clothes would be quite loose on the thinner boy.

Having expected that answer, Matt nodded and helped Keith slide on his armor over his jumpsuit. The armor fit him perfectly, as if it had been made for him. Olia couldn't help but wonder where he had gotten such armor

Once Keith was dressed, Matt and Olia helped him slide off the pod. As soon as his feet hit the ground, his knees gave out. Matt caught him under the shoulders, steadying him while Keith got his legs back under him.

After a minute of flexing his legs one at a time, Keith managed to straighten. Matt swung one of Keith's arms over his shoulder, seeing he still wouldn't be able to hold himself.

Keith took a shuffling step forward, then paused. He stared down at his feet, trying to figure out why they weren't functioning properly.

"Just take it slow," Olia advised, standing to the side with her fore-paws raised in case Keith needed help. "One paw at a time."

Keith nodded determinedly, and took a bigger step. With Matt supporting him and Olia coaching, Keith made his slow way outside.

* * *

Even when they reached outside, Keith was still unsteady on his feet so Matt stayed beside him with Keith's arm over his shoulder. Olia walked on Keith's other side, pointing out the different buildings on the base.

Keith took it all in with the vaguely confused expression that hadn't left since the introduction to Matt. He was obviously following Olia's talking -evidenced by his occasional question- but the odd expression didn't leave.

Eventually, the trio reached a huge oxygen tent covering twenty buildings and a courtyard. After stepping into the small tent separating the oxygen tent from the outdoors, Olia removed her mask and motioned for the others to do the same.

When Keith took off his mask, there were red marks where the straps had been. He looked at Olia, and he and Matt laughed. Olia gave her head a quick shake, knowing her fur would have been squashed down from the mask.

"So, we can breathe in here?" Keith asked as they moved into the larger tent.

"Yep. The tent filters out the hydrogen from the air, leaving only oxygen for us to breathe," Matt said. "Not all aliens are lucky enough to be able to breathe both hydrogen and oxygen."

"Can you?" Keith asked Olia.

"No. Caneen need oxygen."

"Hm. Too bad."

Olia led the way to one of the buildings that served as a dining hall. As there was no set eating time -the schedules of the rebels was just too chaotic to even try- there was always someone inside. The trio had arrived at a busy time, so the building was loud and slightly crowded. Olia managed to spot an empty table in the corner, and led the way there.

Olia sat down, and Matt helped Keith beside her before running off to find something safe for Keith to eat. Keith watched him go, wearing an expression of a young Caneen having an older sibling walk away. Olia shook her head, marveling at how quickly Keith had bonded with another human.

After a moment, Keith's gaze moved around the room. His mouth fell open as he took in the myriad of aliens in the room.

"Where did they all come from?" Keith asked, eyes wide.

"Everywhere," Olia said. "Many of the them were freed from slave planets by the rebels or rebellions. Most of them end up with the freedom fighters one way or another. They don't have anywhere else to go."

Keith's head swung around. "Nowhere else to go?"

"Galra have taken over the home planets of almost all the alien races here. Their homes are either still enslaved or destroyed."

Keith's eyes got wide. He dropped his knife on the table as he leaned forward. "You don't think that happened to Earth, do you?"

Matt arrived just then, balancing a tray in either hand and one across his arm. "What happened to Earth?"

"What if the Galra has already taken it over?" Keith asked, turning his gaze to Matt.

"Not a chance," Matt said. He set the trays on the table and sat across from Keith. "Earth's pretty low on the Galra priority list. No real threat there."

"Which means if they _did,_ Earth would be easy pickings," Keith said.

"Nah. Galra always underestimate us humans," Matt said with an easy grin.

Keith relaxed a bit, and focused on the food that Matt had set in front of him. "What is this?"

"Not sure the exact name -everyone calls food by different names- but this is as close to Italian that I've eaten in space."

Olia watched in amusement as Keith took a tentative bite of the purple-colored noodles that Matt was so fond of. His eyes widened, and he dove in more enthusiastically. He had the noodles finished in minutes.

"Well, I think that meal's a keeper," Matt said with a laugh.

Keith grinned sheepishly, then picked up the roll still on the tray to nibble at it. Absently, his free hand found his knife and picked it up again.

"So, what now?"

Olia looked up from her tray of kibble. Matt was staring at her expectantly, with a smile that meant he was up to something.

"I suppose I'll head back out soon," Olia said cautiously.

"Why don't you stick around for a few quintants?" Matt suggested. "Te-Osh left this morning for a liberation run, so I'm not going anywhere until she gets back."

"If I stick around for too long, Lt. Ozar is never going to let me leave again," Olia said. "He'll find some excuse to keep me here?"

Keith blinked at her. "Why?"

Matt smirked, responding before Olia could change the subject. "You know that all the captains whose base you have stayed at have a challenge. First one to get you to stay at the base for longer than a movement, gets bragging rights."

"Oh, ha ha." Olia sniffed. "I just like to keep moving is all."

Matt only hummed and watched her, not losing the smirk. Olia dropped her head and focused on her food.

Matt shrugged and turned back to Keith. "We gave Te-Osh the coordinates for Bel-Rath, where Olia found you. They'll be passing by, and will see if they can find any clues as to where you came from."

"Clues?"

"A crashed ship, a shelter, maybe some others still there."

Keith lowered the half of the roll that remained. He squinted thoughtfully. "Did you warn them about the lion?"

"I didn't hear anything about a lion," Matt said, brow creasing.

"Well, it's not like they could miss it. It had to have been as big as a building."

Olia lifted her head. "I don't know. That robot seemed pretty protective of you at first."

Matt looked between Olia and Keith. "Are we talking about a lion or a robot?"

"Both," they both said.

Matt dropped his elbows onto the table and leaned his chin on his hands. He had an excited gleam in his eyes. "Explain."

"Like he said, he was big. _Huge!_ It could have swallowed one of our pods in its mouth!" Olia said, gesturing excitedly. "And its paws? Wow, it could have stepped on me, and not even noticed. Its eyes glowed yellow, and it was so agile. And, it could fly!"

"It was big, red, and growled," Keith said, looking away.

Olia shook her head. "Whoever was controlling it must have been worried. I know that it was just a robot, but it just _looked_ so worried! Those big ol' paws I mentioned? It just touched you, ever so gently, then nudged me closer to you."

"All I remember is him chasing me through the woods," Keith said.

Matt raised an eyebrow. "'Him?'"

Keith scowled. "Yeah, so?"

"I just think it's cute that you called the massive, dangerous lion-bot a 'he,'" Matt said.

"You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"

"Nope! Just look at you, barely known me for an hour, and it's like we're old friends!"

"Yeah, I can see the urge to throw himself into deep space increasing by the tick," Olia said drily, pretending to not hear Matt's protest as she turned her attention back to her food.

* * *

Once the three had finished eating, Olia hurried them out of the noisy hall. Sure, she was kind of a pack alien, but the dining hall was just too much for her.

Keith continued to gaze about at his surroundings as he walked. He was finally steady on his feet, but he would glance at Matt or Olia every few seconds, as if afraid of losing track of them.

"Lt. Ozar's been sending out patrols for supplies the last movement," Matt started, filling in Olia as they wandered through the courtyard. "We had a large number of newcomers a phoeb ago, and we were running out of room. Rebels were forced to move to other bases, but it's sometimes too risky to move. There are so many half-formed hideouts across the universe right now. Now that we have caught up some, we are trying to bring them back, but no one knows how many are out there or how to reach them."

"That's why I need to head out soon. I'll keep an eye out for any lost rebels," Olia said.

"It's not just supplies or missing aliens, it's defense," Matt said, reaching out to steer Keith around a tent support pole that the entranced boy had nearly walked into. "Aliens we bring in are helpless, and often have no knowledge of how to fight or fly. We need more fighters, but we're a medical base. We don't have the weapons to equip fighters, much less the time to train them."

"Is that why you stick around here between missions?" Olia asked.

Matt shrugged. "Te-Osh and her team are some of the few here that can fight. I might as well do my part."

Keith abruptly stopped and turned to face Matt. "Could you teach me? To fight?"

Olia and Matt halted, a bit surprised that Keith had actually been paying attention while he gazed around. He was still wearing that slightly confused expression, but his face was serious. Olia remembered his firm grip on his knife, and wondered how experienced he was in using it.

"Weren't you planning on rejoining your own group?" Olia asked.

"Yes?" Keith said, frowning. "I don't know. Maybe I could get them to come here, and help."

"One step at a time," Matt said with a smile. "Te-Osh will be reaching Bel-Rath in a few vargas."

"Bel-Rath is that close?"

"Well, Te-Osh left this morning and has a fast ship," Matt said. "She has to, considering the dangerous missions she goes on."

"It helps that she has such a good mechanic," Olia said off-handedly.

Matt beamed, and Olia couldn't help but chuckle at his pleased expression.

"Since Te-Osh won't be back for a few days, suppose I could borrow her mechanic?"

"Sure, I-" Matt started.

"I'm sure Eni isn't too busy right now," Olia interrupted.

Matt's mouth fell open in a cry of dismay. "Eni? He doesn't work on the ships!"

"Oh?" Olia said, knowing that perfectly well. "Do you know who else could help me?"

Keith raised a hand to point blankly at Matt. "Him?"

"Thank you! See, he knows what he's talking about!"

"I don't know…" Olia said, pretending to think.

Keith cocked his head. "Olia? I'm pretty sure he's a mechanic."

"Uh, huh. What tipped you off?" Matt kidded.

"You have wrenches in your belt, and your face has oil on it."

For a moment, Matt and Olia could only stare at Keith. He cocked his head and raised an eyebrow at them, honestly not getting that the pair had been joking with each other.

"Bud," Matt said, throwing an arm around Keith's shoulder. "While I check Olia's ship, I'm going to teach you about a little thing called sarcasm."

* * *

A few hours later, Matt was up to his elbows in the Clunker's engine, with Keith perched on the front of the ship above him. Olia was inside, sorting through her finds.

"What did that Caneen do to this ship?" Matt said in wonder. He grunted and jerked out a wire to hold it up, showing the wire to be half melted. "It's a wonder she hasn't crashed."

"Matt," Keith started, shifting from his crouched position to kneeling. His knife clanked against the Clunker. "How did you end up here at Kraydah's Moon?"

"That's a bit of a long story. You see, my dad, a friend name Shiro, and I flew out to Kerberos. I'm sure you heard the story before you left Earth. Anyway, the Galra came across us and we were captured." Matt leaned back, and said more slowly, "We were separated. My dad was sent to some camp that was supposed to be for the smarter prisoners. I didn't make the cut." Matt shot Keith a grin before going on.

"Shiro and I were sent for the gladiator ring. I, uh… wasn't as skilled at fighting as I am now. I wouldn't have survived, but Shiro pretended to go crazy! He injured me, so I was sent away to a slave camp for weaker prisoners." Matt slowly lowered his pliers. "I don't even know if Shiro survived."

"I was at the camp for months, before Te-Osh's team broke in to free the prisoners. I was brought here to heal, and started work as a mechanic. I guess Te-Osh took a liking to me, because she invited me to join her crew. They're the ones who taught me to fight. And, well, here I am."

"Have you ever thought about going back? To Earth?" Keith asked.

"Every day," Matt said honestly with a wistful smile. "But, as long as there are Galra, I don't suppose I could be happy with myself for running home. I've got family on Earth, and I'm doing my part to make sure they don't suffer in the hands of the Galra."

"How do you know Earth is still safe?" Keith asked.

Matt set down his tools and stood. "I've been working on a Galra tracking technology. It's pretty rough right now, but with patrol reports and info I gain when I am close enough to hack Galra files, I'm tracking Galra movements. All indications show them to be far from Earth. My capture was part of a scout patrol, and that section of space has apparently been forgotten, pushed aside because the Galra think that humans are weak."

"But we're not," Keith said, sounding slightly uncertain.

"Right." Matt grinned. "And as long as the Galra underestimate us, we're always going to surprise them."

"Olia!"

Matt and Keith turned at the shout. Eni was barreling toward them. Olia bounded out of the Clunker as Eni arrived and stopped.

"Te-Osh's crew," Eni said before anyone could ask. "They are approaching Bel-Rath."

* * *

Matt, Olia, and Keith followed Eni to the base's radio room.

The room was a twenty-by-twenty room packed with tables and radios at various stages of breaking down. A dozen aliens hunched over the tables, fiddling with dials and speaking urgently into microphones. Maps were tacked to the walls, with colored pins indicating rebel locations, Galra movements, and supply routes.

Eni led the group to a corner table, and sat in front of the radio. Voices murmured over the speakers, running off coordinates and orders.

"Te-Osh's radio runs on a special frequency separate from the others," Matt explained. "With the dangerous work she does, it's especially important that the Galra can't intercept her transmissions."

Keith walked around the the side of the table. He was doing that funny head cocking thing again as he studied the radio, and Olia wondered if it was an old habit or a new one.

A loud exclamation came from the radio, startling Keith so that he leaped back. Eni immediately leaned forward and picked up the microphone.

"What is it? Galra?"

"No… not Galra…" said Nov, Te-Osh's radio operator. "Are you sure you gave us the right coordinates?"

Matt looked at Olia, who nodded.

"I'm sure. Why? What do you see?" Olia asked.

"If this is Bel-Rath… there isn't anyone here. I don't see how there could have been," Nov said. "The whole planet… it's just fallen apart."

"It was the Galra," Te-Osh intercepted. "I've seen it before. They drained the planet's quintessence."

"Drained the…" Olia trailed off, swallowing hard. Matt gave her a concerned look, so Olia shook her head. "Are there any ships nearby?"

"Radars are showing nothing," Nov said.

"If the Galra have been here so recently, we can't risk sticking around," Te-Osh said regretfully. "We can check again on our way back."

"They must have bailed when the Galra showed up," Matt said. He looked at Keith, whose only response had been to frown. "Sorry, bud."

"They'll show up." Keith stared into space before smiling at Matt. "Right? They wouldn't just leave me."

"Right. And until then, you can hang out here with me," Matt said.

Olia knew what Matt was thinking behind those cheery words. Whoever had been with Keith -if anyone had, there was still a chance that Keith had ended up on Bel-Rath alone- would probably be long gone. Any clues as to Keith's whereabouts was as lacking as any clues as to where his friends could be.

At least Matt was there for Keith, Olia figured. Both boys obviously were glad for the human companionship, and Olia knew Matt well enough that she doubted he would leave Keith to go on a mission.

And, watching Keith perk up when Matt said that, Olia knew that she just couldn't leave the boy that so reminded her of her own brother.


	2. Way of the Blade

**A/N: The new and improved chapter!**

 **So, apparently, the Marmoran blades can signal danger? I don't know if it's danger in general, Galra, some sort of Blade code, or why it never happened with canon Keith, but I love it, and I will use it.**

 **Slight (very slight) blood warning.**

* * *

"How experienced are you with that knife?"

Keith studied the knife that had rarely been out of his grasp in the two days since awakening. He shrugged and looked back up at Matt.

Matt tapped his staff on the ground in thought. He had decided it best that Keith knew how to at least defend himself during his stay. It had taken very little convincing -it was more Keith convincing Matt that it would be fine, actually- for basic training to be planned.

Now, Matt and Keith had one of the small training rooms on Kraydah's moon to themselves. Olia was sitting against the wall, watching.

Without warning, Matt raised his staff and rushed at Keith. The best way to get a feel for the boy's abilities, Matt figured, was to see how he responded to an attack.

Keith, completely unprepared for the attack, gave a yelp of shock. His hands come up, but hardly in a fighting manner.

Matt swung his staff low, easily swiping Keith's feet out from under him. He was forced to follow up the first hit with a quick snap of his wrist, smacking Keith's hand and causing him to let go of the knife he had been holding backwards before he stabbed himself.

Keith crashed to the floor, flat on his back and hand stinging. He stared up at Matt with an expression of betrayal.

Matt sighed and held out a hand. "Looks like we're starting at the beginning."

Sullen, Keith sat up on his own and snatched up his blade from where it had fallen. He stood without assistance. He scowled at Matt's expression.

"Don't be that way," Matt said, holding back a laugh. He walked back to where the training weapons were kept, and grabbed a second staff. Both staffs were made of a rubbery sort of material that did much less damage than Matt's usual metal staff. "We'll just have to start with the basics."

Keith gave up being resentful when Matt held out the staff to him. His head fell into a cocked position as he put away his knife in the sheath and took the offered staff.

At once, it felt off to him. Too long, too heavy. But, he didn't say anything to Matt. Instead, he stubbornly lifted the staff in one hand.

"No, no," Matt said immediately. "Both hands. And put your feet further apart! You need a stable stance."

Several minutes later, Matt had Keith positioned to his satisfaction. He thought Keith looked uncomfortable in the stance, but put it to inexperience.

Matt ran through some basic techniques, then stood back while Keith performed them alone. His movements were stiff and unsteady, Matt saw right off. He also moved his feet around more than necessary, meaning it would be easy to knock him off-balance.

After an hour of watching Keith's ungangly attempts, Matt shook his head.

"Okay, just stop moving," Matt said, holding his hands up.

Keith complied, although he was slightly bent backward in a very awkward position. He did… hold it, though. He wasn't even wobbling.

"How are you holding that?" Matt asked, walking around Keith.

Keith huffed and attempted to swing his staff back at Matt, but Matt had seen his hold shift. He swung his own staff to intercept Keith's, following through with a thrust that wretched Keith's staff from his hand. The momentum threw Keith to the floor.

"Too obvious, bud," Matt said, standing over Keith.

Keith grunted and rolled to his knees. "I'm not your buddy."

"What else should I call you? Besides, you wanted me to teach you."

Keith's hand whipped out to snatch his staff. He swung at Matt's ankles, and the other boy barely leaped out of the way. Keith lunged to his feet, swinging the staff one-handed. Matt blocked it easily and swung himself. Keith ducked below the staff, lunging forward with his staff cocked behind him. He swung the staff forward, but Matt's leg came up to block it. Matt snapped his staff down, smacking Keith's head and making him stagger back.

"Keep your distance," Matt instructed, holding a ready stance. "The staff allows you to attack from a distance, out of reach of the enemy. With enough training, it becomes an extension of your arm."

Keith scowled and rushed Matt again, ignoring Matt's instruction. Matt spun away and batted away Keith's clumsy attempts to hit him with the staff. Keith didn't quit even then, so Matt kept up his defense, hoping Keith would calm down.

* * *

It didn't work. Ten minutes later, sweat was streaming down Keith's face. Matt was starting to get tired from just blocking, so he could only imagine how Keith felt. He _had_ almost died less than a week earlier, after all.

"That's enough," Matt said, stepping backward.

Keith advanced again, and Matt had to block a swing from the staff. He put more force then normal into the divert, throwing Keith wildly off balance.

"I said, enough!" Matt said.

Keith only planted his feet and swung his staff one-handed. Matt swiftly brought up his staff with enough force to knock Keith's staff out of his hand. He darted over to the staff and picked it up before Keith could retrieve it.

The two boys stared at each other, panting heavily. Keith was scowling. Matt assumed it was at him, though Keith was mentally berating himself for losing to Matt so easily. He knew that Matt had been going easy on him, and he didn't like it.

"Matt? Pup?" Olia said hesitantly, speaking for the first time since the training began.

"That's enough for today," Matt said quietly.

* * *

After the disastrous training session, Matt didn't expect Keith to want more. But, Keith had come to him the next day, ready for another go. He grudgingly agreed, telling himself that a second session could only go better, right?

Wrong.

Matt was regretting the decision within ten minutes. That session went very much the same as the first had. Even then, Keith persisted on Matt training with him. Considering it always ended with Keith flung to the floor and Matt taking away his staff, Matt was at a loss by the time a week had passed.

Granted, Matt had to admit that Keith had some amazing reflexes. He almost always saw Matt's attack before he could strike, and was able to dodge away. His staff became an efficient blocker, but Matt had yet to see Keith use it on the offense to any degree of success.

Keith's flexibility continued to amaze Matt as well. He could throw his body into many positions that Matt couldn't achieve himself, and hold it as well. Each day, Keith revealed some new twist of his frame that had Matt wincing, but never seemed to bother him.

Still, for all the training and all Keith's defensive qualities, Matt didn't think he was a very good fighter. He was awkward in blows with the staff and always tried to get too close.

Now, two weeks had passed, and the only thing that had changed was that Keith had gotten better at dodging Matt's attacks.

* * *

"Would you just give me the staff?" Matt asked, exasperated.

Keith stood across the room, breathing hard and sweaty, but stubborn. He gripped the staff more firmly.

"Attack me!" Keith demanded.

Matt groaned and leaned forward to rest his hands on his knees. He checked the wrist computer -a glorified wristwatch that had some basic computer functions. His eyes widened when he realized that three hours had passed since the session started.

Thudding footsteps alerted Matt that Keith was running to attack, so he quickly straightened and brought up his staff in time to block the blow. He twisted the staff, throwing Keith off-balance. He lunged, but Keith was able to spin out of reach and brought his staff up again. A flick of the wrist, and Matt had Keith's feet out from under him. Matt leaped for the staff, only to have Keith kick up his feet and catch him square in the stomach. His breath _whooshed_ away, allowing Keith to get to his feet and dart to a safe distance.

"I'm not quitting," Keith panted.

Matt fell to his knees and groaned out, "Yeah. No kidding."

This was how most of the sessions went now. Matt couldn't move fast enough to get Keith's staff, and he now tired at the same pace as Keith. The pair would face off briefly, before finally breaking apart. Matt could never recover fast enough to go after Keith before he caught his breath.

Matt was starting to think he needed back-up. Maybe on the first few days, he had gone easy on Keith, but Keith had improved so much on his defense. Matt was having to try harder and harder to disarm him, the only way that Keith would quit.

He glanced at the door, wishing that Olia would return. She had left soon after training started, choosing for some target practice in preference of watching the boys "run in circles trying to hit each other with sticks."

No sooner had his attention been diverted, Matt heard Keith making another rush. Stifling a sigh, Matt dove off to the side. He swiped his staff behind him, feeling contact and hearing Keith crash to the ground. He whipped around, only to have Keith kick off of his body. Both boys rolled across the ground in opposite directions.

As Matt was sitting up, Keith was already to his knees. Matt was ready to stand, when there was a brief, purple flash from behind Keith.

"What was that?" Matt asked.

"What?" Keith asked, tensing in anticipation of another attack.

Before either could make another move, the door slammed open. Olia rushed in, fear in her eyes. From outside, Matt could hear alarms.

"Galra!" Olia yelped.

Matt leaped to his feet. With a curt, "Stay here," to Keith, Matt tossed aside his training staff and rushed outside. Olia ran after him, slamming the door behind her.

Keith stared at the closed door, still crouched where he had pushed himself. He could still hear the faint sound of the alarms.

Galra. While he couldn't remember Galra, Matt had made it clear they were bad news. They would sporadically attack the base. They never succeeded in overrunning the medical base, but didn't seem to care. Rebels were injured, buildings wrecked, and sometimes equipment was destroyed.

Keith's grip on his training staff tightened as his eyes narrowed. No matter what Matt said or how awful he was at fighting, he wasn't just going to sit there while everyone else fought! He leaped to his feet and ran outside.

* * *

Matt and Olia ran to their barracks so Matt could grab a mask and get his staff made for real fighting. They rushed out of the oxygen tent, and were immediately confronted by Galra sentries.

Matt whipped up his staff, knocking off the first two robots' heads. Olia took out the next two with her energy pistol, clearing a path.

They didn't waste any time. They hurried to the nearest building, dodging Galra fire and sentries. Luckily, there were no ships in the sky besides the small carrier that had deposited the sentries.

Matt scanned the attackers, but didn't seen any flesh Galra. That meant that the attack had been one of the random patrols sent out by Zarkon. Which did have the benefit that the attacks wouldn't persist until the sentries ran out, but that still meant fighting until all the sentries were gone.

The pair reached a doorway and pressed themselves against the frame. Mikkal was there, brandishing a metal pole.

"Get inside," Olia said, positioning herself in front of the door. "We'll keep them from coming inside."

Mikkal nodded and vanished. Matt turned back to the approaching sentries, then ducked his head to rush them.

The first sentry went down after a blow to the chest, collapsing in a fit of sparks. Matt knocked out the legs of the next sentry, then spun away from a sentry's fire. Olia, still at the door, whipped up her gun and shot down the sentries closing in on Matt. Matt lunged and drove his staff through another sentry's chest, then took a moment to look around.

While the number of sentries was relatively small, there were also very few fighters for the rebels. Besides Matt and Olia, there were maybe a dozen capable fighters at the base, if they were lucky. Rebels came to the base often for a stopping place, but didn't stick around.

Matt narrowed his eyes. Well, they'd just have to make do.

"Matt!" Olia yelled as a group of sentries burst out from behind a nearby building.

Matt whipped around, but the lead sentry crashed into him before he could react. He was knocked the ground, staff flailing. He beat off the first sentry, then another grabbed the staff. He wretched on it, but the sentry's grip was firm as it tried to jerk away his weapon.

"Why'd they have to send the smart ones?!" Matt cried, kicking out.

The sentry caught his foot and jerked him around, throwing him half a dozen feet before he rolled to a stop. Wincing from the jar to his body, Matt shoved himself to his knees. He had lost his staff in the toss, it now laid a couple of feet from his hand. He lifted his head to see the end of a blaster in his face. He froze, mind scrambling for a plan. Before he could come up with anything, there was a wild cry from the left.

A familiar knife came spinning in from the direction of the shout. It stabbed into the sentry's shoulder, throwing it off balance.

Keith came running out of nowhere in a blur of white and red. He ran his shoulder into the sentry, and both went down.

Matt scrambled to his feet, snatching up his staff as he did. He swung it down, disconnecting the sentry's gun hand with a _snap_. He raised the staff, intending to finish the sentry, when a laser blast inches from his head made him flinch. He whipped around, raising the staff defensively.

A dozen sentries had closed in around them. A glance to the side revealed Olia to be struggling with a couple sentries on her own. Leaving Keith to wrestle with the disarmed sentry, Matt focused the ones surrounding them.

"Just hang in there, bud," Matt grunted, swinging his staff.

Keith, with his arms and legs wrapped around the sentry and stuck in a rough headlock, didn't answer. He spared to release one hand, reaching around for the staff he had lost in the tackle. When his hand closed on it, he wedged it between the sentry's arm and his body. He jammed the end of the staff into the ground and jerked up, breaking the arm free from the body. With one arm gone, Keith easily shoved free. He leaped to his feet, leaving his knife still embedded in the sentry's shoulder, and swung the staff into the sentry's side. The metal dented, but only slightly.

Matt, seeing that Keith was free, spun on his heel and smashed the end of the staff into the sentry. Keith dodged under his arm, jumping and knocking down another sentry just raising its gun.

"Would you stop just tackling them?" Matt demanded, knocking the last sentry standing out of commission.

"More incoming!" Someone yelled.

Matt whipped around. A blue humanoid like Lt. Ozar, named Casey, was pointing at the sky. Matt followed her pointing, eyes widening.

"Three more carriers!" Matt hollered.

The rebels, fighting off the last few sentries, turned to face the incoming ships. There were a few scattered groans, then a defiant cry.

"Freedom!"

"Matt!" And individual yell brought Matt's attention back to Keith.

Keith had both hands around the sentry's gun, struggling to keep it pointed at the sky. Matt swung, but the sentry jerked out of harm's way. The sudden movement dislodged Keith long enough for it to aim its gun and fire.

Pain shot up Matt's arm. He gave a shout of alarm and fell back, letting go of the staff to clutch his injured hand to his chest.

Olia shot the sentry she had been wrestling with and turned at Matt's shout. She whipped her gun up, but Keith had dived back onto the sentry, blocking her line of fire.

"Move, pup!" Olia yelled, eyes darting around. She had a moment before the Galra reinforcements landed.

Keith grunted and tried to kick away, but the sentry latched onto his wrist with its free hand. It shoved him to the ground, knocking away his breath and causing him to lose his staff.

Olia saw her chance. She whipped her gun up, then had to duck away from a shot from another sentry. She turned away from Keith, hoping that Keith and Matt could get themselves safe.

Keith, meanwhile, had just the presence of mind to jerk up his hands, freeing his wrist. He rolled away, attempting to leap to his feet but instead ending up in an unsteady crouch.

Matt was still on the ground, gritting his teeth as he ever so slowly crawled for his staff. Olia was still too distracted to help.

Keith had to move before the sentry had time to take aim. He lunged for the sentry, but it caught him in the chest and tossed him aside. Keith landed on his back with an _oof_ , briefly too out of breath to move.

That was when Matt made his move. Snatching up his staff, he made an unstable rush at the sentry. It spun, catching Matt across the face and sending him back to the ground. The sentry raised its gun, training it on the stunned Matt.

 _Not Matt!_

The thought screaming in his mind, Keith forced himself to his feet. The sound brought the sentry back around, a split-second away from firing.

Keith rushed forward, ready to simply tackle the sentry and subdue it until someone with a real weapon could help him.

Apparently, the sentry had wisened up to Keith's methods. It easily sidestepped, swinging its arm down to catch Keith in the middle of the back.

"These things are too smart!" Matt yelped, having finally caught his breath.

The sentry was ready to turn back to Matt, as if it couldn't decide who to shoot first. Keith flipped onto all fours, powered by adrenaline and frustration. If he just had a _weapon._

At the thought, Keith became aware of an odd glow in his hand. He glanced down, raising his right hand as a red handle sort of thing that appeared when the glow disappeared. In the next instant, the handle transformed into a long, red and white sword.

Deciding to not question it, Keith gripped the handle of the sword and leaped to his feet. He swung the sword, feeling it slice cleanly through the sentry. It collapsed to the ground in two pieces just as Olia was turning back to them.

For a second, Olia just stared at Keith. She waved her paw in exasperation, saying with a bit of a snap, "You couldn't have done that sooner?"

"I didn't know I could!" Keith snapped back.

"Get down!" Matt shouted.

Olia automatically ducked. Keith turned, right arm raising when he realized that sentries had closed in and raised their guns to fire. Matt yelled as the sentries fired.

Time seemed to slow for Keith. He saw the laser blasts coming for him, too fast to dodge. So he didn't. He braced his legs and ducked his head, drawing his sword arm behind him.

Impact jolted Keith's arm, but that was all he felt. He raised his head, oddly unsurprised by the transparent blue shield that had appeared from his armor.

Keith dropped to his knees, keeping low so Matt was also protected from the shots. He grabbed his knife from the sentry's shoulder and sheathed it, then glanced at Matt, who stared at him with a gaping mouth.

"Will you be okay?" Keith asked.

"Wha?" Matt was aware of his mouth flapping like a fish out of water, but he couldn't help it.

Keith's eyes flashed in frustration. "Will you be okay?"

Matt shook off his shock and gripped his staff in his good hand. "I will be."

Keith nodded. "Olia, cover us!"

Olia nodded from her position in the doorway. She glanced at the scattering sentries, then pressed herself against the wall for protection.

Keith ducked his head, breathing, "3… 2… 1!"

Keith burst to his feet. He charged the sentries, keeping the shield up until the last moment. Feet away from the sentries, Keith's sword flashed up. He spun on his heel, slicing two sentries in half. Matt leaped beside him, slamming his staff through the next sentry's chest. Keith's head raised to see a sentry's gun aimed at him. In the next instant, it jolted and fell from a shot from Olia. Keith nodded to the Caneen before leaping back into the fray.

Keith wasn't sure how long they battled. His body almost seemed to move of its own accord, cutting down sentries one after another. Keith and Matt moved back-to-back, an almost unstoppable team with Olia backing them up.

For a long time, Keith was sure they were winning. Until he looked up during a lull, and realized two more carriers had landed. Fighters screamed overhead, blasting down on the base. The rebels were few and far between, often fighting more than three sentries apiece.

Matt, sensing Keith's pause, glanced up and felt his breath catch. "No… We can't win this!"

"We have to!" Keith growled.

He raised his sword, only to feel a persistent pulse pressing in on his skull. He gasped, stumbling a bit, but the feeling was dull. He assumed it was tiredness, until the sword flashed and began to shrink.

"No!" Keith tightened his grip, and the sword returned to normal. "We can still win this, Matt!"

"There's too many," Olia panted. She had been forced from her post when the fighters began to fire on the building she had been protecting. Only the sight of the last of the patients fleeing from the back door gave Olia some calm.

Keith yelled and threw himself back into the fray. Matt and Olia were close behind him, backing up their friend in the losing battle.

All the while, that pressing wouldn't leave Keith alone. Something was trying to draw his sword away, and it was taking more and more concentration to keep it materialized.

Casey ran by. She was supporting Lt. Ozar, whose left leg was turned the wrong way. She paused to say, "We're evacuating the base. Patients first, then get to whatever ship is available."

"No!" Keith said, twisting toward them.

In the moment of distraction, there was a flash from the sword. The next moment, the sword vanished. Keith stared at his suddenly empty hand, panic rapidly rising.

"We have to get everyone out of here!" Olia yelped, eyeing the patients rushing through the buildings. "Come on, pup!"

Keith growled and lifted his head. He drew his knife and nodded.

"Everyone, to me!" Olia yowled.

The rebels all broke off from their fights, rushing to form a wall between the sentries and the injured. The sentries regrouped and faced the rebels.

Keith, Matt, and Olia braced themselves. The battle wasn't theirs to win, only buy time for the injured to get away.

" _The quest for freedom is won through sacrifice,"_ Olia thought. It was the freedom fighters' mantra.

Everyone was ready to fight, when the sentries just froze. They stood in that position for a second, then turned as one and apparently retreated. The rebels were too stunned to move as the sentries loaded into the carriers, which then lifted toward the sky. Matt checked the sky, assuming they had a cruiser to finish off the base, but only saw Galra fighters turning away.

"I guess… we won?" Olia said as the last of the sentries were carried off.

"Oh, good," Matt said.

Matt collapsed to the ground, the adrenaline of the fight draining in an instant. The other rebels responded similarly, giving sighs of relief. Keith was the only one who didn't relax, though his expression was slowly moving back to his normal confusion.

Matt laid his head on the ground and closed his eyes. "Sit down, bud. You deserve a break."

Keith shrugged and silently sheathed his knife. He didn't make any move to sit, and Matt didn't push him to.

"Everyone seems okay," Olia said, scanning the base.

The rebels that had gathered around started to trail towards the few intact buildings. The doctors and patients moving around in the open were acting calm, so there couldn't have been any serious injuries.

Matt sighed. "Okay. I'll leave you in peace now and just die."

Olia's gaze whipped to Matt, but Keith simply snorted.

"You got hit in the hand. I think you'll live," Keith said.

Olia raised a brow, but shook her head when Matt gave a slight smirk. "I'll see how bad the damage was. Pup, get Matt to the infirmary."

Matt opened his eyes, sensing he wouldn't get any sympathy from Keith. The blow had mostly hit the staff, and only three of his fingers were bleeding. His palm was burned, but it had been mostly shock that had sent him to the ground.

Keith crouched. Without preamble, he took Matt's injured hand and lifted it. Matt hissed at the movement, but Keith gave no indication of hearing it.

"Stay here," Keith said after a moment. Without waiting for a response, Keith stood and trotted in the direction of the infirmary.

Matt stared at Keith's retreating back. Wasn't that what he had told Keith when the attack started? He was briefly tempted to get up and follow, but shook off the rebellious thought and looked around for himself.

Sentry parts littered the base. The first carrier that had brought them was a burning mess in the remains of a barracks that Matt knew to be empty just then. Besides the destroyed barracks and infirmary, several of the buildings had windows and doors shot out, and the entire corner of one of the other infirmaries had been destroyed. There was a gaping hole in the ground concerningly close to the underground hangers.

Rebels were already going about their business, some starting on repairs while others dragged the sentries into the "Shop" -a large building that they used to repurpose junk.

"Here."

Matt jumped, turning to see Keith once again beside him. The younger boy silently took his injured hand and started cleaning the blood from Matt fingers. He smeared a creamy ointment over the burns and cuts, then wrapped the hand with cloth. The whole time, Keith didn't say a word and the usual slight confusion in his eyes was replaced with focus. Once he had finished, Matt held up his hand to inspect.

He was impressed. The bandage was wrapped firmly around the hand, not leaving room for movement that would prevent the cuts from healing. Because of the ointment, the pain was rapidly fading.

"You did a good job," Matt said.

Keith shrugged. His usual look of confusion was back. He turned away and finally said. He thoughtfully took out his knife, causing Matt to remember his first attack.

"How far away were you when you threw that?" Matt asked.

"Um… twenty feet?"

"Twe- How?" Matt stammered out.

Keith rolled his eyes. "I just threw it. I was aiming for the head, anyway."

"You missed by, like, three inches." Matt rested his chin on his good hand. "Maybe I should have seen how you did with throwing knives first. Where did that sword come from? And, uh… where did you put it.

"I didn't put it anywhere," Keith said. "It just came out of nowhere, and left the same way.

"Aw, why do you get the magical swords," Matt said with a pout. He circled Keith, as if he had somehow hidden it behind his back. "Hm. It was the same colors as your armor. Maybe that has something to do with it."

Keith opened his hand, trying to will the sword back. He intended to have Matt inspect it, but no matter how hard he tried, the sword didn't return.

"What are you doing?" Olia asked, coming up behind the boys.

"He's trying to summon his magical blade," Matt said enthusiastically.

Olia stared at Matt, then turned to Keith. Since nothing was happening, Keith sheepishly lowered his hand.

"We can figure that out later," Olia decided. "There weren't any major injuries, but two of our fighters are in the cryo-pods. Repairs are already starting, so we had better help. Matt, how's your hand?"  
"Good!" Matt lifted his bandaged hand. "He did a good job."

"Mikkal is a good medic. Fast, too," Olia commented.

"Not him." Matt shook his head and looked at Keith. "He did."

"Pup?" Olia said, a bit surprised.

"It's not that hard to bandage a hand," Keith said defensively.

Matt abruptly grabbed one of Keith's hands, making him yelp in surprise. Matt studied the hand, noting the pale scars.

"I think you've used knives frequently," Matt said. "Thus you have experience in bandaging your own hand."

Keith jerked his hand away. "So?"

"Our first hints to your past!" Matt said, resisting the urge to hop.

Keith looked down at the knife in his hand. Was it important to him in the past? He didn't like it out of his sight, but did that really mean anything? He closed his eyes and concentrated, but nothing happened.

"Don't worry about it." Olia laid her hand on Keith's shoulder, making him open his eyes. "Something could happen any day now."

"In the meantime," Matt said, bouncing a bit on the balls of his heels. "We'll give up trying to teach you to use the staff. You're hopeless."

Keith lightly punched his shoulder, starting to smile. Smirking, Matt went on.

"Like I said, you have a thing for blades. Eni knows a bit with the sword, maybe he can give you some pointers." Matt snapped the fingers on his good hand. "Hey! You need a sword related nickname."

"A… nickname?" Keith repeated.

"Exactly. After all, Olia's the Sharpshooter and I'm Reach," Matt said.

Keith looked at Olia, who nodded grudgingly. Her accuracy with her energy pistol had allowed what started as a joke to catch on. And Matt was so good at striking from a distance with his staff that he was sometimes called Reach.

"So what does that make me?" Keith wagged the knife he held. "Knife?"

"Eh… no, not good enough. Too specific, and kind of violent."

Matt's logic made Keith laugh a little. Matt fell silent to think. After a minute, Matt still had nothing.

"Come on, you can think while we work," Olia said, walking away.

Replacing the knife to its sheath, Keith turned to follow. The sound of snapping fingers made him pause and cock his head back.

"Blade!" Matt trotted up to Keith and clapped a proud hand onto his shoulder. "That suits you perfectly. Blade."

"Uh, huh," Keith mumbled, walking away.

"Just wait!" Matt said, following. "The name will stick! You're stuck with it, Blade."

"Whatever makes you happy," Keith said blandly.

Matt huffed and sped past Keith, who smiled. He wondered how long he could go before admitting he agreed. The name really did suit him.


	3. Cat-Nap Keith

It wasn't long after Keith decided to stay at Kraydah's moon, that Matt learned that he had some… interesting sleeping habits. The first hint came on Keith's second day, after their first attempt at training.

Keith had moved on from the failed training fairly fast. Within ten minutes, his frustrated scowl was gone and he went from moody silence to brightly attentive quicker than Matt realized was possible for anyone older than four.

"I have to get to the hangers," Matt said when once he knew Keith wasn't holding any grudges. "Some of the resistance ships could use a fix up."

"Okay," Keith said, not moving from his spot at Matt's side.

"I'll be there late."

"Okay."

Matt stared at Keith, waiting. He had had Keith as a shadow since the boy woke up, and that been long enough to know that Keith had no apparent knowledge or even interest in mechanicking.

Olia laughed and walked away, calling back, "I'll bring dinner later if you don't make it to the dining hall."

"I guess it's you and me, then," Matt said with a shrug. "Come on."

The pair paused at their barrack to pick up breathing masks and Matt's tools. Keith had been given a satchel by Matt, and he carried a basic tool set inside. His knife and sheath, as always, was hanging at his side. Then they headed outside the oxygen tent to the underground hanger.

A couple of mechanics working on a supply ship called out a greeting. Matt waved, and Keith gave them a reserved nod.

Matt walked over to one of the few fighters that the base had, and set down his tools. He had been working on the ship for since the day before, repairing the engine and wing damage caused during an attack.

"I'm almost done with the engine," Matt said, heaving open the damaged panel. "You keep checking for holes in the outer shell."

Keith nodded and scrambled atop the ship. Matt shook his head and got to work. Keith's "job" was actually unnecessary, but Keith wasn't skilled enough to help with the actual work. So, it was that or have Keith simply watch him the entire time.

Matt quickly fell into distraction as he worked. It was a common thing for him, and he knew that the other mechanics would let him know when it started to get late. When someone tapped his shoulder, Matt jumped and spun around.

Olia was standing there, holding two plates of food and wearing a large grin. "Lose track of time again?"

"Always," Matt agreed, taking the plate Olia offered to him.

"Where's the pup?" Olia asked.

Matt pointed up. "I assume, at least. I doubt he wandered off."

In the little time that Keith had been at the base, he had been practically stuck to Matt or Olia's side. He wouldn't talk to many of the other rebels, Eni being a scarce exception.

Olia chuckled and leaned back. "Hear that, pup?" She didn't get a response, and her amusement died down to curiosity. "You don't suppose he actually left, do you?"

Matt set aside his food, curious himself now. He swung himself onto the ship's wing. Not seeing Keith on top of the ship, he climbed up further and finally spotted Keith.

Olia climbed up beside Matt and spotted Keith at the same time. Her brows raised as she asked, "How?"

Keith was sitting cross-legged on the ship's wing. His body was curled inward, head nearly on his lap. His arms were out of sight, tucked against his stomach. His only motion was the slight rise and fall of his frame with each softly snoring breath.

"He fell asleep?" Matt asked in bewilderment.

"Apparently," Olia said with a giggle. "I didn't realize humans could bend that far."

"Not without giving ourselves a majorly cricked neck, at least."

Matt slid down the way he had come to the floor, then walked around the ship. Keith's position looked no less awkward from that side. He reached up and gently jiggled Keith's knee.

"Hey. Wake up, bud," Matt said softly, not wanting to startle Keith and make him fall off the wing.

At first, Matt got no response. He was ready to try something else, when Keith flinched in his sleep. His head shot up, his bleary eyes wide. He looked quickly down and locked gazes with Matt. After a moment, his expression cleared to his normal.

"What did you need?" Keith asked, slowly drawing his body up in a stretch.

"Olia brought us supper." Matt eyed Keith. "Are you okay?"

"Sure. Why?"

"You just… fell asleep in that position?" Matt couldn't help but say it like a question.

Keith shrugged and unfolded his legs. "I finished checking the shell, and got tired." Keith's head cocked. "Did you need something?"

"No, no. Are your legs numb?"

"That's an odd question," Keith said, cocking his head. "But no."

Matt watched Keith slide to the ground. He didn't stumble or show any discomfort, so Matt just shook his head and pushed the incident out of his mind.

* * *

The second time it happened, Matt started to wonder.

It was once again after a difficult training session a couple days later. Keith had followed Matt to the Shop, the latter searching for some spare parts to improve one of the fighters engines. Olia had vanished, but Matt knew she liked to be alone sometimes, so he didn't worry.

"Hey, Matt!"

Matt straightened from his search of parts spread on one of the Shop's numerous tables. Eni was walking over.

"Hey, Eni," Matt said, returning to his search. "Need some parts, too?"

"Yes. Te-Osh's transmissions are becoming difficult to hear. We can't afford to have our communications with her lost." Eni pushed aside some parts and picked up a fuse to inspect it. "Anyway, where is your shadow?"

"Hm?" Matt turned to where Keith had been following him, but found the younger boy to be missing. "Huh. He was just here."

Matt scanned the room. He knew it was unlikely that Keith had gone off by himself, but what other explanation was there? He shrugged and turned back to the table. Maybe he had decided to talk to the rebels after all.

Matt and Eni resumed digging through the parts. The parts had come from trading members of the rebels, scavenging teams, and salvaged bits of the Galra attacks. The Shop was full and disorganized, but Matt didn't mind the search. More often than not, he would come across something that served his purpose even better than what he was originally searching for.

After nearly an hour, Eni gave a sudden start. Matt looked at him in alarm, relaxing when he saw the creature that had leaped onto the Balmaran's shoulder.

He was a small and monkey-like alien called a Riti. He had smooth, rust brown skin, and a puffy tuft of chocolate brown fur on the tip of his tail and ears. His face had more of a lizard muzzle, narrow and long. His black eyes had flecks of silver. The tunics and pants he wore always looked too big for him, but allowed him free movement of his eerily flexible limbs.

"Monty," Eni greeted the Riti.

"Hey. Looking for parts? What parts, I can help." Monty had a rapid-fire manner of speaking that made his words nearly run together.

"I think I have everything, thanks," Eni said.

Monty shrugged twice -due to having an extra joint between his shoulder and elbow, it was possible for him to shrug twice at once. He bounced off Eni's shoulder and onto Matt's.

"Where's Olia? Or maybe you can help. Are you watching her pup?" Monty asked, scurrying to the top of Matt's head.

Matt had to take a second to sort out the questions before answering. "Yes."

Until they figured out what to call him, Keith was being referred to as "Olia's pup." Matt found this equally amusing and odd.

Monty leaned down so he was facing Matt upside-down. "Well, you don't do a very good job. Oh, no, no. Ought to be ashamed of yourself."

Matt raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Don't even know." Monty made a rapid clicking sound. "Don't you let that pup sleep? No, gotta lay on the hard cold floor to get any rest. Shame."

"Hold up." Matt lifted the Riti off his head and set him on the table. "He fell asleep on the floor? Again?"

"This has happened before?" Eni asked.

"Yeah, the other day." Matt rubbed the back of his head. "I just assumed he was tired from the training. Monty, where did you see him?"

Monty gave a scolding chittering before bouncing up and hopping away. Matt and Eni followed him through the cluttered Shop, eventually rounding a pile of old panels and stopping. The panels were stacked to make an empty half circle, where the human in question was currently seated.

Keith was leaning back against the wall of panels. His head was cocked back and turned to the side, with his satchel under it like a pillow and mask slightly askew. His knees were drawn up to his chest, with his hands hidden behind them.

"Are you sure he's asleep?" Eni asked.

It was a sensible question. Keith's eyes were closed, but he was in such a clenched position, it didn't seem like he could be asleep. It was only his lack of response to voices that prompted Matt to nod.

"Should we wake him up?" Eni asked after a moment.

"Probably not, since this isn't the first time. We should let him sleep," Matt said.

Monty shook his head and bounded away, muttering about the "cold, hard ground."

"Let's at least get him to bed," Eni suggested.

Matt nodded. Eni handed over his basket of parts, then crouched beside Keith. He laid an experimental hand on his shoulder, but didn't get a response.

In one swift motion, Eni swept his arms under Keith's thin frame and easily scooped him up. Keith moaned and squirmed at the motion, eyelids threatening to open. Matt tensed, but Eni just laid a gentle hand over his face and hummed lowly. Keith shifted a bit more, as if protesting being forced out of his tight position, but calmed down under Eni's embrace.

"You got him?" Matt asked when it became clear that Keith wouldn't awaken.

"Easy. He's so light," Eni said.

A strangely sad expression crossed Eni's face, but was gone so quickly that Matt wondered if he had imagined it.

Matt picked up Keith's satchel, saying, "Yeah. Olia really worries about that, but I think that is just how he is."

The pair fell silent, making their way outside. Halfway to the oxygen tent, Matt spotted Olia exit one of the firing ranges. Her gaze trailed around, before falling on the trio.

Olia froze. It was like she had run into an invisible obstacle, her stop was so abrupt. Matt paused, confused by her reaction and horror filling her face. The next moment, she was running. She ground to a stop in front of Eni.

"He's just asleep," Eni said before Olia could even open her mouth. "He got tired."

Olia visibly relaxed with a sigh. Matt glanced between Eni and Olia, really curious now.

"What the deal?" Matt asked.

Eni looked at Olia, signalling she would have to be the one to say. Olia lowered her ears, thinking about not answering.

Olia figured Matt had a right to know. He sounded like he would be sticking around, so maybe she should tell him in case she reacted like that again. Plus, he was already a good friend. She knew she could trust him with the truth.

Then again, she had felt that way not long after even meeting Matt. But explaining just then felt as impossible as it had almost a year ago.

"Bad memories," Olia muttered.

Matt didn't press Olia. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what could fill the tough Caneen with such fear.

The trio started moving again toward the oxygen tents. They ducked inside, Matt and Olia removing their masks and Keith's. Eni had no mask, but was able to breathe fine in either environment. They went to the barracks and Eni settled Keith in his bed.

"Thanks," Matt said as he Eni took his basket and left.

He got busy pulling off Keith's boots so he could get more comfortable. Of course, no sooner had Matt removed one boot, then Keith's eyes snapped open and he sat upright. Matt leaped back, startled and barely holding in a yelp. Olia wasn't as successful, her ruff also fluffing up.

As before, Keith felt a surge of panic upon awakening, before spotting Matt and calming down. He opened his mouth to ask what he needed, then paused.

Keith's eyes slowly fell to the bed he currently sat on. He lifted his bootless foot, cocking his head at it, then raised his eyebrows at Matt.

"You fell asleep in the Shop," Matt finally said. "Eni carried you here."

"Oh. Thanks, but you could have just woken me," Keith said, snagging his boot from Matt.

"Bud." Matt waited for Keith to look at him. "You fell _asleep_ on the _floor_."

"Yes?"

Matt and Olia looked at each other, then back to Keith. Was that normal for him? It had happened twice now, and Matt had to admit that Keith didn't act tired during the day. Maybe he just liked to nap.

Olia shook her head. "You should rest for the day. And no training tomorrow."

Keith sat up straighter. "But I need to train! Ask Matt!"

"You have a long way to go, but exhausting yourself will only make training go slower," Matt said. "Listen to Olia."

Keith frowned, his face pursing into more of a pout than he intended. Matt ducked his head to hide a smile, but Olia wasn't amused.

"How about this?" Keith said, switching tactics. "I'll stay in bed for the rest of the day, as long as you let me train tomorrow."

Olia was ready to say no, but Keith just gazed up at her with expectation. He was beaming like Matt over a new piece of tech.

Olia groaned. She couldn't say no to that face.

"Fine. As long as you don't budge from that bed, and you tell us if you are getting tired tomorrow," Olia said.

Keith's smile grew even wider. He yanked off his boots and tossed them under the bed, then squeezed back against the headboard and pulled the blanket over his knees. He sat there for about two seconds, then his cheer faded slightly.

"I'm not tired," Keith said. "What am I going to do for the rest of the day?"

Olia gave in to a laugh at Keith's frustrated expression. "I'll keep you company, pup."

Keith perked up. "That sounds good!"

"I'll leave you to that," Matt said with a laugh. "Those ships won't fix themselves. And don't worry, Olia, I'll keep an eye on him tomorrow."

* * *

Matt did try to go easy on Keith the next day, but Keith was too stubborn to train to give up. It took Olia's interference to stop the training from lasting over half an hour.

Afterwards, Matt and Olia kept an eye on Keith, but he never showed signs of fatigue. The same thing followed for the next week, causing them to figure it had been a fluke the first couple times.

Then, Olia turned her back one day, and came back to find Keith asleep in the corner of the shooting range. She promptly woke him up and sent him to bed.

It happened a fourth time the day after the Galra attack. It took a good deal of shaking to rouse Keith, but Matt put it to how much he had trained with his new sword.

Keith would have trained longer with the sword, but it had mysteriously vanished without warning. Keith had been put out, and Matt decided to conveniently "forget" about the training swords.

Three days later, after an intense conversation with some of the officers during a meal, they had found Keith curled under the table. No one knew how long he had been there, and it was only because of the startled yelp Keith had given when Eni accidently kicked him that prevented the group from missing his absence even longer.

Needless to say, Matt was starting to get worried.

* * *

"It's happened five times? In less than three movements?" Mikkal clarified.

Matt nodded. He glanced at Keith, who admittedly looked too awake considering he had been snoozing under a table less than an hour earlier. Olia was watching him like a hawk, half afraid he would fall asleep the moment she took her eyes away.

Mikkal took a step closed to Keith, who backed away. Mikkal paused, raising an eye ridge in Matt's direction.

"It's okay, bud," Matt said. "Mikkal is just wanting to figure out why you keep falling asleep."

Keith's eyes ran through the examination room. There was a high, simple table, a counter, a pair of stools, and a collection of jars on a shelf above the counter. A tray on the counter held some electronic devices and very normal-looking tools like a thermometer and otoscope.

Keith shook his head, backing further away. His arms were crossed in a way that was very close to hugging himself. He bounced nervously on his toes, conscious of the others' curious gazes.

"'m fine," Keith mumbled.

"Blade, you've been falling asleep in the middle of the day for no reason," Olia said. "You obviously aren't 'fine.'"

Keith scowled at his feet. "Don't need a doctor."

Matt's eyebrows raised at a thought. "Blade, are you afraid of doctors?"

"No!" Keith protested immediately and vehemently, confirming Matt's theory.

Matt looked at Mikkal, grinning. Mikkal, acting unfazed, simply crossed the room and took a seat on one of the stools.

"Alright," Mikkal started, curling his tail around the stool legs. "How about if I just ask you some questions?"

Keith stared at Mikkal. He was sure there was some trick behind his method, but couldn't decide what.

"What do you spend your day doing?" Mikkal asked.

Keith shifted from foot to foot, then decided to answer. "I train. With my sword and knife. And help Matt."

Matt hid a smile at Keith's short way of answering. Olia gave an amused snort, knowing just how animated Keith could be when he wanted. Keith gave her a sharp look.

"And you enjoy it?" Mikkal asked, as if the silent exchange wasn't happening.

"Yes," Keith said firmly. "I do it whenever I can."

Mikkal smiled. "You'd do it all day if you could, huh?"

Keith nodded. "I would. But Olia won't let me."

Matt gave a cough that sounded suspiciously like a laugh. Olia swatted him with her tail.

Ignoring them, Mikkal asked, "Do you ever feel like it is too much? Does it make you tired?"

"Not at all," Keith said. "No."

"So it's Matt's conversation boring you to sleep," Mikkal said.

"Hey! I'm not boring!"

But Keith didn't respond. Which wasn't too surprising, considering how quiet he had been, but his thoughtful expression did catch Matt's attention.

"I'm not that boring, am I?" Matt asked.

"It's better than the quiet," Keith mumbled.

Mikkal gave a slow nod. Matt and Olia looked at Keith, trying to puzzle out what he meant.

"I see the problem now," Mikkal said, standing. Keith tensed, but Mikkal didn't look at him. "There is none."

"See?" Keith said, relaxing enough to be smug.

"I can see you're itching to go," Mikkal said, waving a hand. "Go on, I'm done."

Keith nodded and bolted for the door. Olia shook her head, amused, as she followed. Matt was behind her, but paused when Mikkal put a hand on his shoulder.

"Have you noticed Blade being awake in the morning before you?" Mikkal asked.

"He's an early riser," Matt said with a shrug.

"I think it is more than that," Mikkal said knowingly.

Matt rolled his eyes. "You're being as cryptic as Travis. Spit it out."

"It's the silence. Haven't you noticed that Blade falls asleep when everyone is busy and talking? I don't think he likes the silence, and it keeps him from sleeping during the night."

"What can we do? We can't exactly talk all night long, and Blade's current sleeping habits can't be healthy."

"He isn't showing signs of extreme fatigue, so he must be getting enough. But you are right. If something were prevent Blade from falling asleep during the day, then we will really have issues."

Matt thought for a moment. "Hey, I bet I could put together a white noise machine."

"I'm not familiar with that sort of machine," Mikkal said.

"It's just a little machine that runs, you know, background noise. The sound of rain or wind -or even the sound of a ship engine, if that's what calms Blade down."

"I think that would work," Mikkal mused. "It would be worth a shot."

"I'll get to work on that right away," Matt said, backing toward the door. "Thanks, Mikkal!"

* * *

Matt, Olia, and Keith had a little section of the barracks to themselves. The small room had four beds, and a blanket hung like a curtain to divide Matt and Keith's side of the room from Olia's.

Matt's corner of the room had a vast collection of parts overflowing his cabinet, half-finished robots under the bed, and more than a few devices that Keith hadn't figured out the purpose of of on the floor.

Keith's portion of the room was significantly neater. He kept his satchel and knife -on the rare occasion he wasn't wearing them- on the bedside table beside the small lamp and flashlight. His armor sat in a box under the bed, and some spare shirts and pants occupied his cabinet. A small clock Matt had rigged up hung on the wall, and there was a smaller box under the bed holding odds and ends that Keith had claimed from the salvage teams and the Shop.

Olia's corner had very little. She was always ready to fly off, so she kept most of her stuff in the Clunker. It was rare for her to have anything more than a spare set of clothing.

The finished projects of Matt's currently occupied the unclaimed corner of the room until Matt found a permanent place for it elsewhere.

After the discussion with Mikkal, the trio had retreated to their room. Matt had started right off with his white noise machine. Taking a nearly finished communicator, Matt swept off parts from his bed and got to work. Olia and Keith, receiving no explanation, decided to ignore Matt in favor of Keith's self-proclaimed "everything box."

"And the purpose of this is…?" Olia asked, dangling a braided strip of black cloth between her fingers.

Keith snatched it back. "It's important."

Keith dropped the strip back into the box. Besides the braid was a a green metal device that gave a constant clicking sound, a bundle of blue metal sticks, a yellow crystal, an orange, fuzzy toy that resembled a klanmuirl, and a pink box with a light blue clasp and highlights mixed in with the bolts, a few tools, and cables.

"You said that about the jitterstick," Olia said, referring to the rubbery yellow stick that Keith had insisted on keeping the week before. She held up the crystal. "Until you got this."

Keith huffed through his nose as he shuffled through the box, leaving Olia to run her paw over the crystal's surface.

It hadn't escaped her notice that Keith always kept some item that was green, blue, yellow, orange, pink, and black in his box. They were replaced out frequently, but she had also noticed how defensive he was of the black-themed item. The quirk puzzled her, but Keith didn't think it was odd in the slightest.

Matt gave a frustrated noise, drawing his companions' attention. With no explanation, he leaped up and ran out of the room, still holding the device.

"I wonder if Mikkal asked him to make something," Olia wondered aloud.

"He'll show it off to us when he is done," Keith said, already distracted with a broken handheld radio.

Olia shrugged in agreement. The pair leaned over the radio, both with honestly no real idea of how to fix it.

* * *

Half an hour later, Matt rushed back into the room. He was panting, but grinning as he held out his device to Keith. The boy took it and inspected the palm-sized item.

Keith spotted a button on the top. He pointed to it and raised an eyebrow at Matt, who nodded. He pressed the button, and the sound of a thrumming engine filled the room.

"What is this?"

"Press it again!" Matt ordered.

Keith obeyed, and a chirping came from the device. Keith and Olia's eyebrows raised as trickling water joined in.

"Don't ask where I got that one. Some of the rebels can make really interesting sounds, but I had to promise to not say who to get the bird sound," Matt said.

Keith curiously pushed the button again, and a more familiar engine sound came out.

"That's the Clunker!" Olia said.

Keith pushed the button a fourth time, and the device fell silent.

"I could only get three, but there will be time to record others later," Matt said. "Oh, and that's not even the best part!"

Matt took back the white noise machine and pressed a button on the bottom to activate the hologram function. A foot-tall projection of a planet and its moon with some stars appeared.

The hologram had been a last second thought of Matt's. He figured that in addition to white noise, having a small light in the room could maybe help Keith relax.

"It's just the area around Kraydah's moon right now, but I have some space map images I hope to download in it," Matt excitedly explained.

"That's cool," Keith said, taking back the device when Matt offered it.

"And it's yours," Matt said.

"What? Really?"

"Yep. Mikkal thinks you may be not getting a solid night's sleep because it's too quiet. So, tah-dah!" Matt finished with a flourish.

Keith smiled, touched by the gift. There was also a bit of amusement at how proud Matt was; he was just beaming. He thanked Matt and insisted on trying it out immediately. Matt and Olia agreed, and everyone went to bed to the sound of the Clunker's engine.

Keith had to admit that the constant thrumming was actually pretty relaxing. Matt smiled when Keith fell asleep in minutes. He turned over, very proud of himself.

* * *

"Oh, come on!"

Matt planted his fists on his hips and glared down at Keith. Not that he was noticed. Once again, the boy was out cold. This time, he was bunched under a table in the Shop. Matt wasn't sure what could have prompted Keith to get down there in the first place, never mind fall asleep.

Matt crouched in front of Keith and poked his arm. Perhaps a bit too hard, because Keith shot awake.

Giving a startled cry at the sight of a shadowed figure in front of him, Keith kicked his curled legs straight out. He caught Matt in the chest, causing him to fall backwards into a table. Keith scrambled to get to his knees and draw his knife, still unaware of who had woken him.

"Blade!" Matt squawked, ignoring the startled looks he was now getting from the rebels. "What was that for?"

Keith froze, hand inches from his knife. "Matt?"

"Who else?" Matt asked rhetorically as he stood.

"Um…" Keith thought for a second, but he couldn't recall exactly _what_ it was he thought had been in front of him upon awakening. "I don't know. Olia?"

"It was a rhet- you know what? Never mind. Just get out here, would ya?"

Keith sheepishly crawled out from under the table. Matt was giving him that funny look he always got when Keith came out of impossibly small spaces. Keith stood and cocked his head in response, getting a snort from Matt.

Matt took Keith's arm and started leading him away. "I thought you had been sleeping at night."

"I am. Your Lan-Dev works great," Keith said. The "Lan-Dev" stood for Light and Noise Device.

"If it works so good, why are you still falling asleep in the middle of the day?" Matt asked.

Keith shrugged, playing innocent.

"Honestly, what I am going to do with you?" Matt asked himself. "And we didn't even train today!"

Keith just smiled, letting Matt go on about his sleeping habits as he tugged him across the base.

* * *

A bit later, Matt had handed Keith over to Olia so he could get some work done. Some of Mikkal's machines were having issues, and Matt was quickly becoming the one to call for mechanical problems.

As he was exiting the oxygen tent, complaining quietly to himself over what to do about Keith, he passed Lt. Ozar.

"What was that?" the blue humanoid asked, causing Matt to pause.

"Oh, it's Blade," Matt said. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "He is apparently not getting enough sleep at night. You saw him last movement… under the table."

Lt. Ozar raised an eyebrow. "It isn't easy, keeping the night watch."

"No, I never could-" Matt stopped and looked at Lt. Ozar. "What?"

"The night watch. I've been meaning to speak to him, tell him there really is no need. He sure acts determined to…," Lt. Ozar trailed off as Matt's expression grew more confused. "You don't know?"

"Know what? Blade isn't part of any night patrol!"

Lt. Ozar smiled and waved Matt to follow him without explaining. Thoroughly curious, Matt trailed after Lt. Ozar.

The pair soon reached the main security building. Lt. Ozar led the way inside to a room full of monitors, where images from throughout the base was shown. The rebels inside stood as Lt. Ozar entered, and were waved to sit down.

"Over here," Lt. Ozar said, standing behind a Balmaran. "Viti, could you bring up the footage of Blade from last night?"

"Sure thing," said Viti, as she turned to another monitor.

"Last night?" Matt repeated.

"Just watch," Lt. Ozar said mysteriously.

Soon, a new image filled the screen. It showed the front of one of the barracks, which Matt recognized as his from the half-finished solar panels on the roof.

"I don't get it," Matt said.

A moment later, the barrack door opened. Keith crept out in full armor, gently closing the door behind him. He glanced around, then dragged a ladder laying nearby upright. He leaned it against the side of the barrack, and climbed to the roof. He sat down cross-legged, and proceeded to stare at the sky.

"What's he doing? Star gazing?" Matt asked, not getting how this could be defined as a "night patrol."

"Skip ahead," Lt. Ozar said.

Viti obligingly fast-forwarded the video. The clock in the corner of the screen showed an hour past before Viti slowed down the images.

Keith was standing from his spot and climbed back to the ground. He replaced the ladder, then trotted out of view. Viti brought up several more images of Keith moving through the base. He peered in through the infirmary doors, shined his light into the shop, inspected the hangers, and slipped between barracks.

"He… he's really doing a nightly patrol?" Matt stammered out.

"Not every night. We haven't noticed a pattern," Viti said, clicking through a few more images. "He spends random nights outside for no set amount of time. Sometimes he just sits on your barrack roof, and other times he goes through the whole base."

"I assumed you knew," Lt. Ozar said.

"First I heard of it," Matt said. "No one told him to do it?"

"There is no need to patrol at night," Lt. Ozar pointed out.

"Huh." Matt shook his head. "Well, that explains him falling asleep at night. Thank, Lt."

"No problem. Will you let him know that the patrols aren't necessary?"

Matt thought for a moment before responding. "No, I don't think so. As long as it is okay with you, I don't think I'll tell him that I know about that."

"I don't see any problems."

"Good. I would bet that why Blade does that might have something to do with his past. Kind of like his knife. I'll ask Mikkal next time I see him."

Matt waved good-bye and left. He chuckled to himself as he went back to his business. Maybe the night patrol was odd and unnecessary, but it must have made Keith happy. Matt figured he could put up with Keith sleeping in odd places if that was what Keith wanted.

* * *

Several nights later, Keith was sneaking out of the barracks. He used his usual means to get onto the room, and settled down to watch the sky.

He hadn't been sure what prompted him to come out the first time. Okay, maybe he did a little.

He had woken up in the middle of the night, frozen and full of a feeling of dread. It had taken several minutes for him to calm down. He had then risen and quietly checked the barracks.

Nothing had been wrong. Matt had been sprawled out in his bed, a robot he was working on clutched in one arm. Olia had been curled in the bed like a dog, snoring softly.

From there, he had moved outside.

The base was never truly quiet. Machines hummed, nocturnal aliens chattered quietly, and the occasional rebel ship flew overhead. But nothing fit the feeling of _wrong_ that still pounded in his chest.

Keith would have pushed it away as his imagination, if the sense hadn't risen the very night before the Galra sentries had attacked. The feeling had persisted for most of the day, fading away when the sentries left. He took the sensation a bit more seriously after that.

It had become a bit of a habit. Some nights never held that foreboding feeling, but he still liked to give a quick check around if he happened to be awake.

Tonight was as quiet as ever. Keith shifted so that he was laying on his back, head pillowed on his hands.

Some night, he would have to drag out Matt and Olia to watch the stars with him.

* * *

 **A/N: It took almost two weeks to realize that I had the wrong document posted for this chapter.**

 **Now, for some acknowledgements that are way over-due and wimpy short. (Seriously, give these guys a hand!)**

 **First off is Gravtron1, who's become a steady reviewer and a great friend and writer to talk stories over! She's been great, and was going to help me with some of the lighter things in this tale.**

 **Next is Cuthalion97, who has also become someone I enjoy talking with! They have been my beta for another one of my stories, and was going to help me keep my ducks in a row for this one.**

 **Finally, is Wolf of the Demise, whose comment in Distant Memories inspired this little divert!**


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